


There's A Girl

by imsoglitter



Series: The House Upon The Hill [3]
Category: The Secret Garden, The Secret Garden - All Media Types, The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
Genre: Angst, Brothers, Canon?, Cholera, F/M, Family, Family Feels, This Is Based Off The Musical Mainly, Unrequited Love, good natured brotherly ribbing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-06
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2019-06-06 04:08:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15186413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imsoglitter/pseuds/imsoglitter
Summary: “By day or night, in weal or woe,That heart, no longer free,Must bear the love it cannot show,And silent ache for thee.”- Lord Byron





	1. Chapter 1

Misselthwaite Manor was haunted. That was beyond a shadow of a doubt. It was no place for children. Not Colin, and definitely not this girl coming in from India, Neville thought, rereading the letter.

It was quite a sad story. The poor thing had lost everyone, had almost been taken by the cholera herself! And now all she had left in the world was Archie.

Archie… how to break this to him? His brother’s stints in the manor were few and far between these years. Lily still roamed the halls, sighing all night long. It nearly drove him mad any time he came back. But surely, he’d want to at least see his niece?

Sighing, Neville reached for a clean sheet of paper, and wrote out a letter, requesting his brother’s speedy return. As much as it pained him to bring his brother back to Misselthwaite’s cursed halls, he ought to at least give the girl a glimpse of who would be providing for her.

He would have Medlock take it out to the mail on her way to the market. He lingered in the hallway on the way back to the study. He found himself in front of Lily’s portrait. Her hazel eyes stared off into the distance, and a rosy smile graced her lips.

“He’s returning, Lily. See that you don’t chase him away this time.” He sighed and ran a hand through his thick dark hair. 

“You’ve ruined him.” he said.

“You’ve ruined me, dear,” he did not say.

He made a mental note to tell the staff to cover the portrait before Archie’s return. No need to remind him. No need.

These last few years had been difficult to say the least. Colin’s condition seemed to be worsening, despite showing no symptoms of having the condition of his father. He was growing weaker everyday.

Neville felt powerless. He had been trying to treat Colin for so long, a decade at this point, but he was foiled at every turn. The boy refused to eat, refused to get out of bed, refused even to get fresh air. Not to mention the banshee screams he let loose whenever the doctor would visit him. Neville didn’t like drugging the boy, but it was necessary for his recovery. Even if Colin saw him as a monster, he could at least sleep with a clean conscience knowing he had done the best he could for his nephew.

It might have been easier if Archie had made any effort to see his boy at all. Granted, at this point it might be a major hazzard. The boy was convinced that his father hated him and that he was going to die. Neville had told him how he was wrong several times, but he was rarely heard over the boy’s yelling, and even more rarely believed.

He sighed. The concept that that… vile beast had been born of Lily was incredible. He blamed it on his brother. In his youth Archie had not been the most level-headed. Eventually it had given way to melancholy, which was only dispersed by Lily.

God, Lily. It had been ten years, and Neville still thought of her almost daily. He wanted to make her proud, take care of her son. He did his best to ignore the fact that it wasn’t his son as well.

In a moment of weakness, he wished that Archie had never been born, or that Colin had never come. It was followed immediately by guilt. The thoughts never really went away, the wishes that they would all disappear. Then he might have had a chance with Lily, might have helped her bear a son, would’ve been master of the manor instead of simply running it in his brother’s absence.

He took a deep breath and tried to shed his annoyance and bitterness. It wouldn’t do, what with his brother coming back, after all. He thought it terribly unfair, that he was left to be the caretaker of grounds, nephew, and brother, but such was his burden. His penance for his sinful thoughts, no doubt.

He adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, sighing deeply as he looked out across the moor. He made his way back to his study, and rang for Medlock. She arrived shortly.

“We are to have a guest, Ms. Medlock. A certain Miss Mary Lennox is going to be staying with us, as Archibald is her new caretaker.”

“And her old caretakers?” Medlock questioned.

“Cholera.”

Ms. Medlock nodded solemnly. The illness was becoming more and more well known as it claimed more lives. Mary hadn’t been the only to lose family to the disease.

Neville watched from the window as Medlock receded into the distance with one of the maids. It was the Sowerby girl, here to help while her mother recovered from her most recent childbirth. Neville had offered his assistance, but Mrs. Sowerby had laughed him off. This was her eighth child after all, she had said, and if she didn’t know what she was doing by now, she wasn’t fit to be a mother, now was she? Neville had smiled weakly at her jest, internally relieved. Though he felt the need to offer his services wherever available, childbirth was painful for him.

The sky was overcast; it often was. Luckily, the clouds were far from tempestuous today, Neville thought as he left the Manor for a walk around the grounds. Nothing like the moor’s air to clear his head. His mind wandered with his feet, and he did his best to avoid thinking about Archie returning, as that would surely lead him to thinking about…

Lily. He was outside her garden now, the walls covered so thick with ivy you couldn’t see the stone beneath. His feet had betrayed him. He glanced dolefully along the wall, struck with the urge to go in, as though her spirit would be stronger within. Not that it would matter. He could never find the damned door, and even if he managed to get within the walls, she wouldn’t pay him any mind. It wouldn’t be any different than at the manor, or her graveside, or anywhere else she had tread in her earthly life.

A shouting from within interrupted his thoughts. The shrill shriek of young Master Colin echoed across the grounds. From a distance it almost sounded pleasant, like singing. Neville slowly shook his head before turning towards the Manor. He debated what to do. He couldn’t let Colin and Mary meet, not until Colin got his strength up, and at the rate that was going, they may as well never meet at all.

He stopped in his office to grab Colin’s medicine, and found himself wishing, not for the first time that he had all the answers.


	2. Chapter 2

Archie had arrived without much pomp and circumstance. Despite his travels, he looked as pale and worn as ever. Neville felt a twinge of worry as he shook his brother’s hand.

They didn't embrace. They had moved beyond that in these later years, and besides, embracing had always made Archie uncomfortable.

“I trust Paris was to your liking?” he inquired as they climbed the stairs together, Archie leaning heavily on his cane.

“As enjoyable as Rome or Berlin or Florence,” Archie grumbled. “I really don’t see the necessity of returning, Neville. You know what happens.”

“I’ve taken the necessary precautions,” Neville assured him. “I just think the girl will want to meet her new benefactor.”

“If she’s Rose’s child, she undoubtedly won’t.”

Neville sighed, stopping to calm himself. It was the travel, he reminded himself. Despite the seemingly unending fortune left by their father, they never were able to secure accomadations quite to Archie’s liking. He would feel better after a solid night’s sleep.

“How is…” Archie started to ask, before trailing off. “How is Colin?”

Neville debated lying, to spare what little hope his brother had, but couldn’t bring himself to do so. He would find out soon enough. “Not as well as I had hoped. I’ve been writing to my colleagues in London, and they’ve suggested-”

“Another round of miracle cures?” Archie asked. “I don’t know how much more the boy can take, Neville.”

“Well perhaps it wouldn’t take a miracle if he would cooperate!” Neville snapped. He immediately felt ashamed. “I’m- I’m sorry Archie. I’m grasping at straws.”

Archie grumbled a pardon and rested on his cane at the top of the stairs. “I don’t suppose he wants to see me?”

“I’m afraid not,” Neville said apologetically. “Normally I would encourage it, but under the circumstances-”

Archie raised a hand. “You’re doing what needs to be done, Neville, and we’re all grateful for it”

“Thank you, Archie. If only young Master Colin saw it as such.”

Neville accompanied the Lord of Misselthwaite Manor to his chambers where the servants were busy unpacking his trunk.

“You’re all dismissed,” Archie said as they passed through the doorway. “I should like some time to rest. There should be plenty of time to get my things in order later, thank you very much.”

The room emptied with little talking and only a few nods of heads exchanged. Archie had never required much deference from the staff, and as such the respect they did give Neville judged to be sincere.

Neville stepped back to give his brother the solitude he desired, but was cut off by Archie saying, “No, no. Stay Neville. I know you’re just dying to diagnose me.” He chuckled, and took a seat, gesturing for Neville to do the same.

“Not  _ diagnose _ you, per se,” Neville responded, inducing another bout of laughter. “But in all seriousness, I would like to know how your condition has… reacted to your travels.”

“And by condition, you mean this thing on my back?”

“God as my witness, we both know that hasn’t changed in years,” Neville joked, “I was meaning your grieving.”

Archie’s smile wavered and fell, and the atmosphere in the room became duller. “It’s certainly… better to some degree when I am gone. I don’t see her quite so often, and the dreams cease. I’m thinking about her always, but I suppose that can’t be helped.”

Neville nodded. “Well, we can hope that this time around will be better. The manor always seems more lively with you around, Archie. I’m sure Colin’s condition will improve greatly just by having you here.”

“You place too much faith in me, Neville.”

“Faith where faith is due, Archie.”

Archie covered his mouth as a yawn escaped his lips. Neville took this as a sign and stood.

“Now where are you going?”

“Away. You need your rest. Travel has never done you well, and I daresay you could use a few decent hours of sleep. You said yourself that there is plenty of time to take care of the unpacking later.”

“Very well, Doctor Craven,” Archie said standing as well, “I suppose I’ll see you in the morning?”

“Bright and early, my Lord,” Neville responded.

The brothers exchanged melancholy smiles and parted.


End file.
